Author Archive: TireMaster

Kumho Tire U.S.A. Inc. is offering up to a $70 Visa prepaid card to consumers who purchase a set of four qualifying Kumho tires from Sept. 1 through Oct. 31. More than 130 different sizes and four patterns are eligible.

Tires eligible for a $70 or $50 Visa prepaid card include:

Crugen HT51 for light truck, SUV and CUV fitments is an asymmetric tire for all weather conditions.

By employing soybean oil in tires, Goodyear says it found a new way to help keep the rubber compound pliable in changing temperatures, a key performance achievement in maintaining and enhancing the vehicle’s grip on the road surface.

Goodyear’s tests have shown rubber made with soybean oil mixes more easily in the silica-reinforced compounds used in manufacturing certain tires. This also improves manufacturing efficiency and reduces energy consumption.

Goodyear cooperated on the project with the USB, a group of farmer-directors. The USB provided some funding support for the development of Goodyear’s soybean oil application in tires.

The commercialization of soybean oil in tires as the latest technology breakthrough by Goodyear builds on the company’s other recent innovations, such as the use of silica derived from rice husk ash, another component Goodyear is using in certain consumer tires, along with current and past uses of components such as carbon fiber, DuPont Kevlar, volcanic sand

Like this:

Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. is offering tire safety tips for young drivers headed back to school as part of its Tread Wisely program.

The company says that while often overlooked, tires are the only thing connecting a car to the road and are extremely important to road safety. Three key safety tips are described below.

1. Check your tire pressure: Having the right amount of air in your tires, or tire pressure, helps your tires perform as they should; giving you better control of your car and helping your tires wear longer and more evenly.

To do this, wait until your tires are cool – at least three hours after you last drove your car. Find your car’s ideal tire pressure listed on the sticker inside your car door, glove box or fuel door, or in the car’s manual. This is not on the tire itself. Remove the tire’s valve cap and press a tire gauge firmly onto the valve stem. The end of your tire pressure gauge will pop up and show a reading of the pounds per square inch (PSI) of air pressure in your tires. If this number matches your recommended tire pressure, you’re good to go. If the number is lower than the recommended tire pressure, your tire is underinflated. You need to put more air in and check again until you reach the right number. If the reading on the gauge is higher than the pressure recommended for your car, your tires are overinflated and you need to release some air.

2. Check your tread depth: Tire tread gives your car the traction to stop and hold the road on curves. Tire tread also funnels water out from under your tires, which helps reduce hydroplaning. Your tire tread should be no less than 2/32nds of an inch deep on any part of your tire.

To check your tread depth, use the penny test. Insert the edge of a penny into the most worn groove of your tire tread with Lincoln’s head down and facing you. If the top of Honest Abe’s head is covered by tread, meaning you cannot see the top of his head, you’re tire tread is in good shape. If the top of his head is visible, you need to replace the tire.

3. Assess the overall condition of your tires: Damaged tires are dangerous and can cause tire failure. Damaged tires can also shorten the life of the tire and result in loss of air. Anytime you see damage to your tire, don’t drive on it. Use your spare or call a friend, parent or someone to get you where you need to go.

Before setting off for your first day of school, look at your tires to ensure there are no cuts, cracks, punctures or bulges. If you spot any of these, get your tires checked by a professional before driving on them.

Short videos showing how to perform these three important tire safety checks, which should be completed monthly and before long road trips, can be found on the Tread Wisely mobile app. This first-of-its-kind app is free and available for download from the App Store (iOS) or Google Play Store (Android).

According to Tread Wisely spokesperson, college sophomore and rookie race car driver Loni Unser, the Tread Wisely app helps ensure monthly tire safety checks aren’t overlooked. “The Tread Wisely app reminds me each month that it’s time to check my tires. With school, friends and racing, it’s easy to forget, but the app sends me a notification so I can be sure my tires are always ready to hit the road. The app is easy to use, and I earn points for each monthly tire safety check I complete, which gives me the chance to win prizes.”

The Tread Wisely tire and vehicle safety program for young drivers was developed in 2016 when Cooper adopted this as a signature philanthropy cause and selected the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS) as a partner in its efforts to educate and motivate young people to take necessary precautions and important safety measures when it comes to their tires and driving.

The two organizations have teamed up to share life-saving messages about tire safety through Tread Wisely social media channels, the web, special youth-directed safety events, and on the ground in communities across the United States. Hundreds of Cooper employees have signed up to serve year-round as Tread Wisely volunteers, demonstrating tire safety in schools, at sporting events, churches and other venues, reaching young drivers in the communities where they live and work.

The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) is once again revising the tariff rates charged to importers of off-the-road tires from China.

The change comes as a result of the DOC’s review of OTR tires brought into the U.S. in 2014. The DOC had published revised rates in April. Afterwards, Titan Tire Corp., the United Steelworkers union and Xuzhou Xugong Tyres Co. Ltd. all filed allegations of “ministerial” or mathematical errors in the calculations.

The DOC agrees it did make an error regarding “the selection of a synthetic rubber benchmark” in its calculations.

As a result, the subsidy rates are changing for Guizhou Tyre Co. Ltd., Xuzhou Xugong and the 44 companies that weren’t selected as mandatory respondents in the investigation. After substantial increases in April, the rates are all increasing again.

In addition to these changes, some tire companies — including Guizhou and Xuzhou, as well as Tianjin United Tire & Rubber International Co. Ltd. — also are pursuing an appeal in the U.S. Court of International Trade. With that appeal pending, a judge has ordered that the tire makers in the appeals case not be subject to these higher rates “pending resolution of the associated litigation.”

The notice is set to be published in the Federal Register on Aug. 25, 2017.

Like this:

The Car Care Council says Fall Car Care Month in October is the perfect time to reach out to your community and remind them of the benefits of auto care while helping your business at the same time.

“With October right around the corner, there are many organizations that want to be part of Fall Car Care Month, but don’t have the time, personnel or budget to host a large-scale inspection event,” says Rich White, executive director, Car Care Council. “The Car Care Council makes leveraging Fall Car Care Month as easy as one, two, three by offering free tools, tips and information that auto care businesses can use to reach out to the community, help motorists be car care aware, and drive service and repair business to their locations.”

To help drive business during Fall Car Care Month and beyond, try these three simple steps from the non-profit Car Care Council:

Free tools – Suggest that your customers sign up for the Car Care Council’s free custom service schedule and e-mail reminder service at http://www.carcare.org/custom-service-schedule and order a free copy of the popular 80-page Car Care Guide for their glove box at http://www.carcare.org/car-care-guide. These links can be easily added to your website and shared on social media to help remind motorists of key service intervals.

Free tips – A quick way to promote your business is to share and retweet tips and reminders from the Car Care Council. By following the Car Care Council on social media, including Facebook and Twitter, you will have relevant content at your fingertips that can be easily shared.

The Car Care Council’s website at http://www.carcare.org has useful information that can be shared with your customers to help them navigate common maintenance procedures and better understand auto repair needs. The site also features an Industry Tool Box section designed to help shops, stores, WDs, state aftermarket associations and other industry organizations take advantage of the business opportunities that Fall Car Care Month can create.

The Strong Guard name, new to Hercules’ commercial products, will be used to denote the brand’s premium medium truck tire products, which feature sophisticated materials and technologies, as well as some of the most impressive coverage in the industry.

Strong Guard truck tires carry a seven-year limited protection policy including free tire replacement during the first 50% of usable tread life, if the tire is found unserviceable due to manufacturing defects. Additionally, Hercules Strong Guard tires carry a casing allowance for three retreads.

“Hercules Strong Guard tires are next-generation truck tires. The enhancements that our customers and end users will see are significant,” says Jedd Emans, vice president of marketing for Hercules. “The Strong Guard line is an excellent example of our brand promise to deliver unmatched value.”

Hercules Strong Guard HRD is a deep, all-position design optimized for higher-scrub applications. It is available in seven standard- and low-profile 22.5-inch and 24.5-inch sizes, including 315/80R22.5.

“This introduction is one more step in our commitment to providing our customers with a compelling commercial offering that delivers breadth, depth and outstanding quality,” says Emans.

Hercules Strong Guard products are now available in the U.S. exclusively through American Tire Distributors (ATD).

Hercules is a wholly owned subsidiary of ATD, which operates more than 140 distribution centers, including 27 distribution centers in Canada, serving approximately 70,000 customers across the U.S. and Canada.

Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. cites an 18% reduction in energy usage in the production of tires as evidence of progress in its sustainability initiatives.

Energy usage is one of several metrics released by the company in its fifth annual “Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Sustainability report – Responsibility the Cooper Way.”

“Cooper’s sustainability initiatives include our efforts to improve the lives of our employees, our communities, and the world for future generations. This report details our progress in terms of environmental stewardship, employee health and safety, technology, innovation, and community support,” says Brad Hughes, CEO and president. “We are making progress on these initiatives and will continue to report our performance to key stakeholders.”

Highlights from Cooper’s 2016 report include:

Energy usage: Cooper has been working for many years to reduce energy usage, a key resource in the production of tires. The company has reduced energy usage intensity by 18% since 2009, and usage intensity has declined year-over-year.

Water usage intensity: Cooper has reduced water usage intensity by 7% since 2009.

Tire safety education: Cooper continues to support its signature cause of tire and vehicle safety for teens and young adults through the Tread Wisely program. Cooper employees are active in sharing education through this program across the United States, Serbia and in the United Kingdom, with plans to expand the program to Asia and Latin America. Cooper also launched its first app, the Tread Wisely app, to put tire and vehicle safety information directly into the hands of young drivers.

Sustainable product innovation: Cooper says it continues to strive toward ever more fuel efficient, better performing tires – creating more value in its products. The company says it is pursuing a variety of sustainable product innovations. Chief among these is Cooper’s recently completed work on a five-year Biomass Research and Development Initiative grant to develop the guayule plant as an alternative natural rubber source for the tire industry. Leading a public-private sector consortium, Cooper produced passenger car tires in which all natural and synthetic rubber is replaced with guayule rubber.

Employee health and safety: Cooper continues to promote a zero-injury culture through an employee Safety Excellence System and a “Drive to Zero” global safety campaign, which demonstrates the company’s commitment to continuous improvement toward becoming an injury-free workplace. The Total Recordable Incident Rate in Cooper’s tire manufacturing plants worldwide has improved more than 70% since 2007.

The new General Grabber APT from Continental Tire the Americas LLC is an all-purpose-terrain tire designed for on-road, off-road and snow performance.

The General Grabber APT is the newest member of the Grabber family of light truck and SUV tires. It is positioned in a spot that was not filled in the current Grabber product portfolio.

Continental says that on the aggressiveness chart, the Grabber APT holds the spot in between the current all-terrain G Grabber AT2 and the highway-terrain G Grabber HTS60. This tire is the perfect blend of all-terrain, off-road capability and excellent on-road performance designed for all weather conditions, according to the company.

Travis Roffler, director of marketing for the General brand, expects the Grabber APT will be a popular tire for those drivers looking for a tire that is mostly driven on the road during the week but can hold its own during weekend adventures. “It offers the best of both worlds with very strong on-road manners but still enough off-road capability to get the job done.”

The new Grabber APT features three exclusive General technologies.

Comfort Balance Technology provides a cushioned tread that absorbs road disturbances for a more comfortable and pleasant ride. Grooves in the tread are angled away from the center grooves to help dissipate sound which provides a quiet ride.
StabiliTread Technology promotes even wear and longer tread life via even pressure distribution and a robust tread compound.
DuraGen Technology offers high strength construction for impressive durability in off-road situations and delivers cut and chip performance on rough surfaces.
The Grabber APT is available in 26 replacement articles in mostly metric sizes of 16 inches to 22 inches. Two additional tires are OE fitments for the Nissan Titan. A 60,000-mile limited tread wear warranty supports the tire along with Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake Certification. Sidewall styling is available in black and outline white letter.

The company says it met all goals outlined in the Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI) grant, “Securing the Future of Natural Rubber-an American Tire and Bioenergy Platform from Guayule.”

Cooper was the lead entity in a consortium that included Clemson University, Cornell University, PanAridus LLC and the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS).

A report on the grant was recently presented at the public-private sector consortium’s wrap-up meeting held at the Cooper Tire & Vehicle Test Center near San Antonio.

Cooper says its scientists produced several sets of concept passenger tires in which all the natural and synthetic rubber is replaced by guayule natural rubber. Guayule, a shrub grown primarily in the southwestern United States, contains rubber that can be process for use in tires. The grant team studied the feasibility of using guayule in tires versus Hevea natural rubber, which is used by the industry today and is sourced primarily from Southeast Asia.

Cooper says the 100%-guayule-based concept tires underwent extensive evaluation by Cooper’s technical team, including rigorous wheel and road tests, and were found to have overall performance at least equal to tires made with Hevea and synthetic rubber. Notably, the tires performed significantly better in rolling resistance, wet handling and wet braking than their conventional counterparts. Following the meeting, consortium members participated in the industry’s first ride and drive on the 100% guayule concept tires at the Cooper facility.

“Cooper built more than 450 tires, replacing various tire components made with Hevea and synthetic rubber with those made with guayule and testing each for overall performance,” says Chuck Yurkovich, senior vice president of global research and development for Cooper.

“Based on our findings, Cooper could use guayule rubber in tire production tomorrow if enough material was available to meet our production needs at a competitive price. To make this happen, the combined effort of government, agriculture and industry is needed to grow the plants and create large-scale manufacturing operations to produce the rubber for use in the tire industry.”

Yurkovich says the results of the grant have been groundbreaking. “Never before has it been proven that guayule is a viable source of domestically produced natural rubber for the tire industry. However, through the combined effort of industry, government and academia, the BRDI team has unequivocally demonstrated just that.”

Hercules Tire & Rubber Co. has added four sizes to its lineup of Ironman All Country M/T tires.
Hercules says the Ironman All Country M/T delivers off-road traction in the most adverse conditions, durability in extended off-road use, and a studdable tread for extra bite.
The four new sizes are all load range E flotation offerings, up to 37-inches overall and with up to 22-inch wheel diameters.
“The All Country M/T has been well-received by both daily drivers and enthusiasts,” says Jedd Emans, vice president of marketing for Hercules. “It’s an incredibly durable and highly versatile tire at an entry-level position, which means this tire has a lot going for it,” .

Here’s a look at the newest Ironman All Country M/T sizes:

37X12.50R20/10 126Q

37X13.50R20/10 127Q

35X12.50R22/10 117Q

37X13.50R22/10 123Q

Hercules highlights these notable features:

groove design enhances durability by protecting against stone drilling and puncture;
shoulder blocks shovel away mud and silt and enhance traction on off-road surfaces;
the staggered buttress design increases off-road capability and guards against high sidewall cuts and abrasions; and
the void ratio effectively promotes self-cleaning capability in muddy conditions.
The tire is available in both the U.S. and Canada.